566
Kennedy, J., dissenting
Accordingly, the judgment of the Court of Appeals is affirmed.
It is so ordered.
Justice Kennedy, with whom The Chief Justice joins, dissenting.
I agree with the Court that the Fourth Amendment was violated in this case. The Fourth Amendment states that "no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized." The warrant issued in this case did not particularly describe the things to be seized, and so did not comply with the Fourth Amendment. I disagree with the Court on whether the officer who obtained the warrant and led the search team is entitled to qualified immunity for his role in the search. In my view, the officer should receive qualified immunity.
An officer conducting a search is entitled to qualified immunity if "a reasonable officer could have believed" that the search was lawful "in light of clearly established law and the information the searching officers possessed." Anderson v. Creighton, 483 U. S. 635, 641 (1987). As the Court notes, this is the same objective reasonableness standard applied under the " 'good faith' " exception to the exclusionary rule. See ante, at 565, n. 8 (citing Malley v. Briggs, 475 U. S. 335, 344 (1986)). The central question is whether someone in the officer's position could reasonably but mistakenly conclude that his conduct complied with the Fourth Amendment. Creighton, supra, at 641. See also Saucier v. Katz, 533 U. S. 194, 206 (2001); Hunter v. Bryant, 502 U. S. 224, 227 (1991) (per curiam).
An officer might reach such a mistaken conclusion for several reasons. He may be unaware of existing law and how it should be applied. See, e. g., Saucier, supra. Alter-detect a glaring defect that Justice Kennedy agrees is of constitutional magnitude, post this page.
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